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Restaurant Tells Diners To Eat Everything On Their Plate
Chef Yukako Ichikawa will offer a 30% discount to patrons who eat all the food they have ordered, and will kindly ask those who don't clean their plates to not come back. "Finishing your meal requires that everything is eaten except lemon slices, gari (sushi ginger), and wasabi," says the menu. "Please also note that vegetables and salad on the side are NOT decorations; they are part of the meal too."
And if you don't, no dessert!
That assumes that the portions are reasonable for the person who ordered it. My wife is petite, can rarely finish a whole entree, and usually takes half of it home. What's his policy on taking it home for later? Since he seems to be offering garnishes that are appropriate for sushi, chances are that not too many of his patrons are eager to a doggie bag of highly perishable food home.
I can understand this policy at a buffet restaurant, but if I walk in and order a specific menu entree, I expect that the fact I paid for it gives me the right to do with it as I damn well please. I'm not paying him to be my mother. I'm paying him to prepare the damn food.
I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
Right, because that attitude isn't part of the cause of obesity in American. No sirree.
If people WOULD push back before the plate was clean, they wouldn't be taking in as many calories.
And I'm not just talking out of my ass. I finally broke my parents' 'eat everything on your plate' rule after being on my own for over a decade. After that, I started losing weight. Gee!
"If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
Is this an article from The Onion?
...that in many Asian cultures it was considered bad manners to completely clean your plate. It's like saying: "You didn't give me enough to eat."
Which, in the U.S., it rarely is.
I've always been taught to finish my plate, but some of the meal sizes in the U.S. are just ridiculous. I understand that I'm getting more value for money, but in the end it's likely to just go wasted.
I presume he wouldn't accept that. After all, everybody would simply claim take-it-home rights -and- the 30% discount.. then probably toss it in the nearest garbage can out of view.
So you should be fine at this establishment.
You're not being mothered, you're still more than free to not finish the plate and pay the monetary price.
On the other hand, if you -do- finish your plate, you only pay $7.. but you might pay the price in cramps later that evening :)
Even if I pledge to eat my leftovers later, I have to pay more and I'm asked not to return? (I'm assuming. The article doesn't say.)
I guess they can make the rules for their own restaurant, but I'll eat elsewhere. Thanks.
Insert self-referential sig here.
When did this happen?
It's a sushi restaurant. For the most part, you order your food in six-piece portions. Thus, anyone can order a meal to the size of their liking. And while it is your right to do whatever you wish with the food you ordered, the owner also has the right to ban you from the premises if he doesn't like what you choose to do.
I imagine that the problem the owner is having is that people come in hungry, order six rolls (36 mouthfulls doesn't sound like that much), and then he has to throw half of them away. Meanwhile, tuna are going extinct.
It being a sushi restaurant, it is probably reasonable to think that patrons can actually order only what they can eat.
In what appears to be the original story, it turns out that HER posted policy begins by requesting patrons "to share meals, to thank the earth while eating and to be mindful of the amount they order". And the article states that you can take food home, but bring your own container.
You are of course correct that you should have the right to order whatever you like, and do whatever you like with it. And, equally, she should have the right to refuse you service for wasting or for any other reason that she considers sufficient. Only time will tell whether hers is a viable business model.
Here is a link to the restaurant website. The full eat in and take out policies seem to be online there.
Sometimes they fool you by walking upright.
No soup for you!
Er, I wasn't aware that you had a choice of how much is on your plate in most restaurants.
There was just a bit on NPR about a study where they had parents force their four-year-old kids to completely clean their plates. They found that the next day, when faced with situations where they could choose how much to eat, they would choose larger portions for themselves than children in the control group.
Link escapes me.
AC: Only on slashdot... could the sentence "My hovercraft is full of eels." be moderated "+4, Insightful
Why would I WANT to come back to a place where I'm treated like an asshole, just because I'm full?
If they think they are better off without customers, then good luck...
The MAFIAA is a bunch of mindless jerks who will be the first up against the wall when the revolution comes
Eating too much is worse than leaving it over... The food was wasted when it was served, irrespective if it end up being wasted / stored as fat by your body or if it is thrown away. Leaving extra food gives the restaurant a chance to dispose of it in a less wasteful way.
Only if they can specify their preferred serving size.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
"If you don't eat your meat, you can't have any pudding. How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?" In all seriousness, there are plenty of restaurants that offer prizes for eating insane amounts of food, and I guess this is just a variant of that. When I was a kid, there was a pub near me that did a challenge where you got a gammon steak topped with as many fried eggs as you wanted, and if you broke the record for the number of eggs eaten with it (and ate the whole steak as well as the eggs) you got it free. Last I heard the record was 42.
Sometimes I complain that everything on Slashdot is either: (1) a misleading story about intellectual property and piracy, (2) a misleading story about the latest events with either Apple or AT&T, or (3) an absurdly misleading story about China, Microsoft, video games, the military, or medical science.
Then every few days the editors put something on the main page which doesn't fall into one of those categories. When they do, it reminds us that maybe those three categories are for the best after all.
B.S. People should only take what they can finish. However, if you are at a restaurant and cannot control the portions given to you (and some restaurants are out of control with their portions), people should *not* finish their meals. The whole idea of "eat everything in front of you" is one of the many reasons this country is overweight to begin with. (Of course, all the fats and sugars we eat don't help either.)
HER posted policy
Oops. My bad. Time for me to RTFA.
I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
You can do whatever you want with it. But if you eat it all you get a 30% discount. If you don't he asks you not to come back. Your rights are fully intact as well are his rights.
Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
My wife and I tried a new sushi place a couple weeks back (free plug: Amura in Lake Mary, for Central Floridians. Best sushi we've had yet.). As usual, we kept it simple and ordered a sushi and sashimi platter. Their platter had less sashimi then we're used to getting, but more rolls, and heavy rolls at that. Absolutely delicious, like to the point that we ate past the point of discomfort, and yet there were still a couple pieces of a tuna roll left. Fortunately nobody decided to shit on such a great meal by giving us crap about not eating those last two pieces that we didn't psychically determine beforehand would be too much.
This reminds me of a thread on another site that was about a sushi chef kicking people out for not eating sushi the way that he wanted them to. Is this sort of crap common with sushi places?
I am with you. I still have to actively stop myself from finnish my food at restaurants.
And even that's enough: how am I supposed to know exactly how much food will satiate me, before I eat it? I can often guess how much I need to feel full, but fairly often I end up grossly overestimating how much food I need.
There's a restaurant in Vancouver (the Elbow Room) that's been doing something like this for years - if you don't eat all your food they request a donation to a food charity.
It appears that some foreigners just don't learn how to deal with Americans.
About 10 years ago, my colleagues and I went to a Chinese place and sat down to order. The guy came out and said we weren't allowed to switch seats and accused me of trying to leave without paying (I had already paid.) That's the last time all ten of us went there.
-- I am. Therefore, I think!
Leftovers will be charged R$ 3,00
With the actual value varying, but ranging from 10% to 30% of the total amount.
This was illegal, but the owners a) didn't seem to care about the legal status and b) didn't actually enforce the rule.
In the end, those signs served as a harsh and unpopular (among the clients) reminder of not putting more on your plate than you can eat. Good intentions, bad execution.
It's a very Japanese thing. It's probably based on the concept of Mottainai, where wasting something (such as food) is seen as wrong/immoral.
The meaning is more nuanced than "wasting" but it is as close I can describe it without copying the entire Wikipedia page.
"... Come back... one year! NEXT!!"
Never thought I'd see an Asian restaurant Nazi. Usually they do that sort of thing to their staff.
"We are Microsoft. You shall be assimilated. Competition is futile."
How in the hell is that similar?
AccountKiller
A place near me which serves all-you-can-eat buffets has a clause which states that if you don't finish your plate then you have to pay a surcharge.
I'm from the UK and I visited the USA last year for the first time, I went to Las Vegas for 10 days and it was very easy to go to the likes of the Bellagio Grand Buffet and eat like a pig for 2 hours. It's quite a novelty, especially when I could eat 6 or 7 different courses at 10am. If I got bored of a course that I'd grabbed, I'd just leave my half filled plate on the table and start again on a different cuisine. The waitress would come along and clear the plate to remove any embaressment by the time I had returned with more noms.
My grandmother would faint if she could see the wastage in the states, she's from a war generation where food was rationed and nothing went to waste. That was diluted over the next 2 generations, but I still have an inbuilt ambition to finish all the food on my plate, rather than just eating the best of it and not appreciate the food infront of me.
must be a very trendy place. that's the only way they could get away with such nonsense. i feel sorry for them in 2 months when they go out of style.
first, if i pay for the food i should be able to flush it down the toilet if i want. second, i didn't choose the portion. if someone serves me more food than i can eat, that's not my fault ... and it's not healthy for anyone to force themselves to eat food when their body says they are full.
Not only that, but who in the hell wants a veggie or salad when you go out for sushi? At those prices, I'll get my greens another time, thank you. But I like an all you can eat deal at Sushi On Tropicana, in Vegas (no, I don't live there or know the owners), 45 minute lunch, 60 minute dinner $23/$28, I can eat a lot of sushi in 45 minutes, I bet they'd love for me to have a salad when I show up... But I'll stick with 8 pieces of Albacore Nigiri (with citrus ponzu and green onion), a few assorted rolls, and then 8 pieces of Hamachi Nigiri (if butter could swim, this would be it) for a finish. No, they don't make a lot of money on me, but I don't go too often.
You have the right to remain sentient. If you give up the right to remain sentient, you will be elected to public office
Visiting many Asian restaurants in my area. I now go to the ones with buffet. When I go to the ones that bring your meal to you, they tend to put too much on the plate. They give you lots of rice and veggies. I can never eat it all. I always end up with take home. So I stopped going to the ones that don't have a buffet. I guess I don't ever have to worry about visiting Wafu restaurants.
you're exactly the type of people he's trying to deter from his restaurant.
Doubtful. I always order a reasonable amount and finish it all.
I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
It is common in many businesses. If a person feels that they are better than you, or even if they just feel they have the upper hand, many will chose to be an ass to you.
Just look at how many Dr. offices have no cell phone signs and have no problem being 20 minutes late to an appointment, but will throw a hissy if you are 5 minutes late, even though they were not going to see you anyway. They expect you to sit quitely and non-productively in their lobby until they decide it is time to honor you with their presence.
Look at how punctual the phone company and cable companies are when you call for an install.
I'm sure if you thought about it, you could think of a couple of dozen industries where they treat their customers like garbage.
In trendy restaurants it often even increases their business.
"free of gluten, dairy, sugar and eggs"
Screw that. I understand people have dietetic restrictions, but there's no way I'm going to a restaurant where I have to abide by 'em.
Maybe the problem is people aren't finishing the meals because they taste like crap and aren't satisfying?
"Oh my God. This is terrible. This is the end of my Presidency. I'm fucked."; ~ Donald J. Trump
Just order the 8 piece rolls or 2 pieces of sushi.
But your screwed if you wanted an odd number.
If you want that kind of freedom, you'll have to go dine at an Open Source restaurant.
Good point about the takeaway containers. I still suspect she would just expect people to finish all the food on the spot though. Personally, I think she is on to a great idea. Reminds me of my swiss aunty who lived through World War II rationing.
In Japan, you don't take things home. Portions are also much smaller when compared with your average American portion. So, I don't think this problem would occur. Also, bear in mind that in Japan it's polite to eat every last grain of rice on your plate - out of respect for the farmers that grew it. He's merely enforcing cultural standards.
Jisho - A Japanese English German Russian French Dictionary for the rest of us.
This is a restaurant... if you don't like the policy, don't go there. The chef is trying to do something positive and it seems like most of you want to criticise him for running his business as he likes.
RTFA... your situation bears NO similarity to what was happening here.
The idea is not new though. I've been to a sushi restaurant in my area a couple of times where you can order unlimited sushi for a fixed price. However, if you order something that you don't eat then you have to pay it's individual price on top of the all-you-can-eat price.
It's a statement on conservation. Don't like it? Don't go. Just because you can throw money around doesn't make you entitled to whatever you want.
Are you? Is the quality of the ingredients as good as you'd have got if they'd made a smaller portion at the same price? Is the cook on minimum wage to pay for your "better value", and was that mayonnaise you just ate, or his pustulent semen? (Or, if you ordered pustulent semen, was it really Walmart mayonnaise?)
As zen morotcycle repairman Pirsig (IIRC) questioned, "what is value"?
Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
Look, I have rock. I don't see any tigers around. I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions.
You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
When I was growing up, my maternal grandmother would insist that we belong to "Clean The Plate Club." She would go to the extreme. One day my sister (who had a tiny appetite) had a tuna melt for lunch. My grandmother made it on two halves of an english muffin with an entire can of tuna and cheese. Needless to say, my sister didn't finish it. So my grandmother wrapped it up and sternly told my sister that she'd eat it for breakfast. While she wasn't looking, my mother threw it out.
I, on the other hand, had no trouble cleaning my plate... and the leftovers on the plates of everyone else at the table. My other extreme was one of the factors that led me to be overweight for much of my life.
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
Funny, I'm always finishing everything on my plate, and I'm still in the "probably already dead from starvation" category in all BMI tables.
If you checked her website you'll see that customers actually seem to be in control of how much food they order ("Please be mindful of the amount of food you order") which makes this a non issue.
And yes, it's impossible to say in advance exactly how much you're gonna eat, but really, it's not that hard to give a decent estimate and then live with when it happens to be a tiny bit off.
May we live long and die out
Hmmmm.... Chicken nail pillow fence?
Most doctors are 20 minutes late because the previous four patients were each 5 minutes late. First thing in the morning and immediately after lunch are the most "on-time" times because patients haven't screwed up the schedule yet.
According to his website, www.wafu.com.au, takeout is available if you bring your own non-perishable dish container. They offer containers to go but charge extra and may ask you not to come back.
I sure hope this restaurant goes out of business soon, that's about the most non businessman-like stance I've ever seen taken in a restaurant.
But then he will be chastised and told not to come back!
Order less. When you're not full, order a bit more. Is it really that difficult?
"What is there a tank on the boat? WHY IS THERE A TANK ON THE BOAT?!?" L4D2
That is a very poor excuse. I think any competent adult could figure out how to solve the problem if your excuse were true. It also doesn't explain why doctors are late at the beginning of the day as much as at the end.
Which, in the U.S., it rarely is.
All very true. Worse is exchanges like:
"I'll have the main dish, but can I have half portion, I won't finish it, it's way too big"
"Ah...hum, sir we don't do that"
"But I'll pay full price anyway"
Baffled lookBut sir, we can't do that...
Apparently, at least in US, it's close to impossible to have a cook who can divide by 2...
I think any competent adult could figure out how to solve the problem if your excuse were true.
First, we'll have to find a competent adult...
I sure hope this restaurant goes out of business soon, that's about the most non businessman-like stance I've ever seen taken in a restaurant.
And yet it seems to be doing just fine. In fact, it's a perfect business model: you find a clientele and provide what they want. It might be a small clientele, but it's a small place too.
If the food is good, why not eat it all? But if the food sucks (like some Oriental places), why should I be asked to eat what is not good quality?
You're right, of course, at least in some cases. Though I imagine asking a waiter "Oh yes, bring me a little more of that steak" is not going to work in many restaurants (except in all-you-can-eat places of course).
It appears that some /.ers just don't learn to read the article.
This place is in Australia.
That's going to do wonders for the growing obesity epidemic.
Camping on quad since 1996.
This is a highly offensive stance to take for a chef. How many times have you gone to a restaurant and been served horrible food? It's a lot more common to be served bad food than great food. If I don't finish my plate, that means your food tastes like SHIT and I refuse to eat your garbage. If the food was good or great but the portions were large, I will take it home thus leaving a cleaned plate. That cleaned plate should be an indicator to you on the quality of your food and nothing else.
The fact that this guy is complaining about too much food on plates indicates he's a bad chef. It's not the customer's fault his food is bad.
Camping on quad since 1996.
We have a few Chinese Restaurants around town with Buffets that have a rule about finishing dishes. They can charge you extra if you don't finish whats on your plate.
Mod parent insightful, oh wait, it already is :)
Japanese cuisine portions are petite, anyway. I wish more restaurants would offer portion sizes, though, because most over-do it. Entree sized portions are better for you.
Just order the 8 piece rolls or 2 pieces of sushi.
But your screwed if you wanted an odd number.
But I wanted prime tuna!
That is a very poor excuse. I think any competent adult could figure out how to solve the problem if your excuse were true. It also doesn't explain why doctors are late at the beginning of the day as much as at the end.
Because they over-book. It really is all about money.
You want it to go out of business because it offends your philosophy?
Doggie bags.
Salmonella sure helps you lose weight.
That's going to do wonders for the growing obesity epidemic.
Then again, sushi probably isn't a contributing factor for the obesity epidemic.
I hope they've planned for the increase in demanded refunds. Sometimes people don't finish what's on their plate because they didn't like it or it was cooked incorrectly. Not everyone in this situation would make a big deal out of it. But if they are giving my shit about not finishing the food I didn't like in the first place, you can bet I'll demand a refund on the spot.
On what basis? That *you* didn't like it, or that there was something wrong with it? Satisfaction guarantees are optional, and not many restaurants would opt for them. Something wrong would be an overcooked steak, maybe, and to get your satisfaction guarantee out of that, you'd need to complain when you started it, not when you'd notionally finished your meal.
I would expect it to, asking people not to come back if they don't finish their meal; although someone pointed out that for some reason that's not the case?
And yes, I guess I do want it to fail too, because I don't want the restaurants I do eat at to copycat this if it catches on.
I'm not looking to excuse crass or wasteful behavior by slathering the problem with cash. I just expect that when I buy food and service at a restaurant, it's not going to come with an EULA.
I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
This is justified (though perhaps a little harsh). Greenhouse gas emissions from food production are the largest polluting sector, much more than transport. Probably most people don't understand how much energy goes into e.g. meat production.
People also need to change their attitude to 'leftovers'. Most good restaurants can pack up your uneaten food to take home and heat in the microwave. As long as you get it really hot before eating the next day, that will kill any bacteria.
Well that's a broader question that's really not at play here, is it?
*All else being equal*, if I get more food for the same price, I get more value for money. ;) )
( but, again, wasted.. as I usually can't finish that damn much food. And yes, I usually ask for smaller portions in U.S. restaurants and they can typically accommodate. Now if only they could make proper 'well done' steaks
It'd go full circle, even if this idea caught on. Someone would (re)introduce potlatch restaurants. Because that's what a lot of them are today, all about conspicuous consumption, the epitome of waste.